The Catholic Church and Education

I live in a catholic country (Italy), in a small town and I go to a catholic and very conservative school.

I am not very religious and, most importantly, I am a feminist. This means I don’t agree with my religion teacher (who is a priest) most of the time, but at least he’s prepared to listen. Religion doesn’t interfere with our academic education, but we do get educated in a Catholic environment: Latin choir, masses, prayers in the morning, that sort of thing. I usually look forward to compulsory religion lessons on Tuesdays, not because I’m particularly passionate about the subject, but for the chance of interesting discussions, where I can express my own feminist views on certain subjects we talk about: abortion, birth control, homosexuality, divorce etc.

The Hidden Difficulties of a Bisexual Teen

Ramona Flowers: one of the few representations of a bisexual girl in the media

In my time as a semi-out bisexual teenager, I’ve encountered plenty of supportive, kind, loving people who have not cared about my sexuality or have been able to relate to me because of it. I’ve met plenty of people who don’t know much about bisexuality, but aren’t really against it either.

Those people I can deal with.

It’s the few people I’ve met who have prejudices against bisexual people, have huge misconceptions about us, or are very nervous around us because of above said misconceptions or prejudices that irk me greatly.

Its difficult being a bisexual teenager, and many straight individuals aren’t aware of or just don’t understand these difficulties. So, I’d like to let you …

The Link Between Beauty, Privilege and the Media

We don’t live in a vacuum. Our ideas, our lexicon, and our beliefs are shaped by outside forces like society, culture, environment, and religion. Fields like sociology and anthropology prove that.

Words matter. You said something heterosexist because your parents / the media / your religion told you; you weren’t born a bigot. Forces like that reflect and shape your ideas. When people, especially celebrities, say transphobic things they fuel transphobia and other people think it is ok because their ideas aren’t challenged. Their bigotry is reinforced every day by outside forces like that. We are conditioned to say things that hurt other people, but we don’t change it because it seems like it doesn’t affect your reality.

In Honor of the Anniversary of Roe v. Wade

Roe v. Wade

My awareness of Roe v. Wade goes back to high school (a few years ago) when in a 12th grade English class we were given a list of important events that occurred from 1960 through present day. We were told to investigate and report on one event as “unbiased news journalists.” The supreme court decision of Roe v. Wade was on the list, and I picked it as my research topic. At the time, I had a very scant inkling of what Roe v. Wade was. From what I can remember, I only knew that it meant women were free to choose child-free lives, and at the time, with four siblings, I was all about never having kids – -so Roe v. Wade it was!

Young Feminism: The Fire Inside Me

In fourth grade I had my first dose of feminism. I had read an article in a local feminist magazine that spoke of the expected roles and stereotypes of a modern female. The issues they were talking about bothered me. I could feel it.

In my elementary years I attended a Catholic school and was well aware of the male dominance in the church. So when I was nine I said that I wanted to be a priest. I spoke to my teacher about this. At first she sort of dismissed it as a silly wish of a fourth grader. But when I asked her why I just couldn’t do it like any other boy could she just sighed and shook her head. She didn’t know.

F-Bomb Scare

teenage feminism is global as proven by 5hereen 5ays

Life has those funny ways of kicking you when you’re finally getting somewhere and helping you out when you’re ready to give up. Somewhere between nursing our constantly sore backsides and finding the will to soldier on, we discover those things that define us. Attributes like adaptability, perseverance, integrity and resilience are what I find myself reaching for almost daily. It’s not always easy to do what I’m trying to do, but no one said it was going to be.

Picture a teenaged, atheist, bisexual feminist with a seemingly confident personality. You might imagine a strong, young woman who speaks openly about sexuality and gender issues, a public speaker or a member of a women’s rights committee, an active member of …

Double Standards

not quite

Man Hater. Lesbian. Outspoken. Beautiful. Overtly Sexual.

In my young life, I have been called many of these things. At first glance, it’s not easy to see how man hater fits with beautiful, or overtly sexual fits with man hater, if lesbian isn’t attached. Am I a man hater? No. I have plenty of guy acquaintances, you could even —gasp— call them good friends. Am I a lesbian? Well, I don’t care for labels. I have never fallen in love, and love has no gender limits. Am I outspoken? Well people have definitely hit the nail on the head with this one. I’m not afraid to call out injustices, I’m not a afraid to be called out on my opinions. I’m not going to ever limit myself to …